Man In The Middle
by Foxissofoxy
Summary: There's only so much Lori can take. There's only so much Michonne is willing to reveal. What separates the women is the last man left in the middle. (Non-Linear) (AU-OOC) (1000 or less words per Chapter) Shane and Andrea are minor characters.
1. Confrontation

"A story has no beginning or end: arbitrarily one chooses that moment of experience from which to look back or from which to look ahead."  
**― Graham Greene, The End of the Affair**

* * *

_I'm stuck again,_  
_In the same old game,_  
_And there's no way in,_  
_No way out._  
_I found me a man,_  
_That don't give a damn,_  
_So I wait, I wait every night._  
_If I try to explain_  
_What breaks me so,_  
_He cries and begs for me not to go,_  
_And so I stay, and I hold his hand_  
_As he looks away without a sound..._  
**Lou Doillon**

Michonne stood in the driveway of her new home trembling as her body released a staggering amount of adrenaline. If it wasn't for recognizing her face, Michonne thought she was being targeted by a homeless person wearing a white sweater with holes, rips, and snags on a hot day in June. An emaciated meth addict.

It was Lori who had driven a vehicle that was unfamiliar to Michonne, but anyone could see it was an older model convertible in pristine condition. A collectors dream. Turning down the radio, Lori kept her engine running. She got out of her car and confronted Michonne who had just hung up on her less than 5 minutes ago.

"Why do you think this is a game, Michonne?"

"Isn't it? I'm sorry if I had gotten it all wrong, Lori. It's just with all this tit for tat. The constant back and forth. I guess if it were, you of all people would know. The true victor. You are the Winner. Yay, Lori."

Michonne used her hands to mimic pom poms. Her tone lacked the necessary enthusiasm to be taken seriously, especially when she proceeded to instruct the brunette on how to feel about the subject.

"Now please get back in your car and go home. Your trophy husband is probably wondering where the hell you are this morning." Michonne tried to brush off the encounter.

Lori's chest swelled, and the words fell from her lips as quickly as it would have been to lie. She spoke the absolute truth. If this were indeed a game, she was ready to claim her stance, once and for all.

"Well, I am offering him to you. Your prize. He is yours to do with whatever the hell you two see fit. I had only come by to make it official. I am done. He's yours. And, looking back on some things, I believe it had always been that way from the very beginning. I will never get a straight answer from either of you. You really deserve each other."

Lori didn't waste any time getting back in her convertible in hopes to leave behind an awestruck woman. A woman who through no fault of her own caused so much grief in Lori's seemingly perfect life.

What Lori had announced had taken her six months to come to terms with and in doing so she had to make up for lost time. Precious time wasted.

_And so I stay, and I hold his hand_  
_As he looks away without a sound_

* * *

A/N: For those of you that may be new to Fox World of storytelling I will point out I have yet to tell a story in true chronological order. Snapshot. Puzzle pieces. You will not find any true order here.

My topic tends to be about infidelity. I have quite a few stories without that theme but you will find it here with a slight twist that makes it different but not by much. There isn't a rabbit hole in this one.

This is already written to completion. I am just not sure if I can post it all in one sitting due to time I wasted trying to figure out how to work Tumblr. I will try. Each Chapter no more than a 1000 words or less.

PS. Expect an update to All I Need next weekend. That story still amuses me. Also Swipe Right I will be closing out soon. I will update how close I am. Thank you to all who continue to read my stories. Thank you!


	2. Finding Out

_"But there's a beginning in an end, you know? It's true that you can't reclaim what you had, but you can lock it up behind you. Start fresh." _  
**― Alexandra Bracken, ****The Darkest Minds **

* * *

"I felt strangely numb...feeling absolutely nothing towards the man who was known as my husband. My marriage was in shambles, and there was nothing I could do to fix it. Reflecting back I had somehow allowed myself to take life's random detour instead of looking at it as a roadblock. A do not proceed if you will."

"It was your journey," Dr. Deanna surmised for the thin brunette who had the stature of an up and coming actress appearing on stage presenting her own monologue instead of marital counseling. The way the gray hues of the sky lit the gauntness in her cheeks was surprisingly sharp. The flowers from the trumpets were closed waiting for the sun to dry the wet morning dew on the petals. The sun remained hidden somewhere in the cloud filled sky.

"I could hardly stand to look at him, but yet when he spoke, he had my full attention while we waited for her to arrive with his children."

Dr. Deanna allowed Lori to drift in and out of the present. She waited...

* * *

_"She's here."_

_"She?"_

I questioned the use of the singular. We were expecting the twins to visit. Michonne was dropping them off instead of a hired driver that generally would bring them and escort them to the front door.

This time was different. Unexpected.

I have long since noticed the slight change regarding his behavior, though subtle, still visible. The beard he wore was one and the removal of his wedding band last night was another.

I never liked facial hair on Rick. Rick knew this. Earlier on in our marriage, it was a topic, and I had assumed clean-shaven was his preference too. He became very meticulous in grooming his beard. Rick rarely wore his usual weekend sweats. Those were replaced by wearing his office attire more casually.

_"Abigail and Jasmine," he corrected_.

Two names from my husband lips were enough of an announcement to cause our very own children, Carl, and Judith, to become more animated knowing their half-sisters were outside our home, sitting in an awaiting car.

_"I am going outside."_

My husband had announced.

_"Sure."_

My tone indicated I was less than thrilled. He wasn't concerned about asking for permission or that I was okay with him going out to greet the woman who turned our world upside down.

_"Just want to make sure it is okay with her."_

_"Why wouldn't it be?"_

_"Sending messages by way of Abby and Jazz isn't communicating."_

His terse response didn't go unnoticed by me. It didn't prevent me from responding back with facts.

_"We have her list. Nowhere on it does it say we can't take them camping. Nowhere on it does it say they can't go to a campground. It isn't like we are taking them out of state. A simple outing with OUR family and them."_

_"It was your idea, Lori. If it bothers you so much we could have done this differently."_

_"How could any of this have gone any differently, Rick?"_

I watched the frustration on his face. His stance indicated to me he had a much bigger fish to fry right then, and I, as his wife was to remain on the backburner or eventually discarded. He exited the house with Carl and Judith following closely behind.

From our living-room window, I watched his daughters excitedly run into his arms. Carl and Judith were nearly tripping over themselves to greet them. The twins are weirdly doll-like. His twins. Children he created with another woman while married to me.

* * *

"To be fair, he was unaware. It was a brief relationship that started and ended in Spain. Before you were officially married. Not making any excuses but we must deal with the full facts to heal properly." Dr. Deanna reminded Lori who didn't acknowledge that she heard the doctor or understood the reasoning behind it.

"I had only the view of his back. His daughters were on each hip squeezing him tightly while being teased by their brother Carl and tugged by Judith which caused Rick to scold them all to settle down so he could speak to the twins' mother without possibly yelling. I couldn't see much else or the person in her white Mercedes Benz sitting in the driver seat. Oh, I knew what she looked like. It wasn't a secret that my husband got a black woman pregnant. Those girls didn't pass for white. There was no way I could pass them off as our children so they will always be considered his children. Children he produced with his mistress, Michonne Benton."

Dr. Deanna sat back in her chair amazed at the confirmation of who the other woman was and that she knew all parties involved.

* * *

It was Carl that told me about his sisters. Sisters he had just met. Carl wanted to know if I would allow them to come over. We were at a restaurant, St. Lucie Steakhouse. I looked over at Rick.

_"Carl and Judith met their half sisters today. It wasn't planned, but they did. They met Abigail and Jasmine. They met the mother too."_

I wanted to throw up.

That is how I found out he fathered children outside of our marriage.

"How did it make you feel?"

"Surprised. Confused. Hurt. Angry. Full of Rage."

"There is really no way to be rational when consumed by rage."


	3. At The Bar

"It wasn't exactly love at first sight, but it was deeper than that. A sense of belonging to a place I never knew I wanted but somehow always needed. It was a home that carried a heartbeat."  
**― Nikki Rowe **

* * *

"Where are our girls?"

"My parents. Carl and Judith are there too."

"You are using your parents to ditch even our children, now?"

"Drink."

Rick was commanding me to consume more of the alcohol to slow my brash delivery.

"I had just sipped."

I informed while our eyes locked until he tried to find something more interesting to divert his attention as he scanned the room briefly, finding nothing.

"Do your parents even know where you are? I'm positive if they knew you were four hours away in a hotel bar with the woman who ruined your marriage-."

"Drink some more Michonne. You didn't ruin my marriage. I'm the one who had ruined my marriage. Not you. Not our daughters. Me. Now keep drinking until you understand I am not here to fight with you."

I took a much longer sip and only then did Rick toss his drink back in one gulp after stroking the sides of the shot glass for what seemed like a long time. There was a female bartender who went by the name of Tara who refilled his drink before she began tending to another male patron who sat at the far end.

"If you keep knocking them back, I will have to call you an Uber, Rick. Now, what's up?"

"Lori is back to fishing."

"I would be too. If I cared. Lori obviously still cares. She is your wife."

Rick's silence was always more than I could handle at times. I needed him to have a response. Quick response or a deflection of any kind to keep our conversation going. He remained quiet as if he was considering my words, my opinion or he really had something he wanted to say but thought better of it.

I gave in.

"What did she find out now?"

"That we are still sleeping together."

"We are not still sleeping together."

"Michonne."

"The last time you and I were intimate was almost a month ago."

"Of course our kids wouldn't imply sex, Michonne. I was in your bed a week ago. Sleeping."

"It was just sleeping," I said emphatically.

I had caught his drift two seconds late. The alcohol was affecting my ability to process information spontaneously.

"Where did she ever get that we are still-."

"Jasmine."

"Well, they didn't lie. Abigail and Jasmine found their Dad in my bed like any other day. Next time I will not allow you inside. Problem solved, happy wife."

"Not allow me inside a home I bought?"

"Why are we like this. Like really?"

"Because you can't be honest with me. I have been nothing but honest with you. From the moment we met, I told you I was getting married. I didn't hide anything from you."

"What are you talking about? I was married at the time. Are we really doing this, years later?"

"We need to air it all out between us, Michonne. Every single thing on the table."

"I'm not doing this here, at the bar, with the bartender all ears. I promise you I am not going to do this with you."

"What is your room number?"

"Why?"

"Because I am going out to my rental to get my suitcase. What is your room number?"

"Rick, I have a long day planned ahead tomorrow. This trip is business. I have a case I am presenting at 9:00am."

"It's been a damn month, Michonne. What is your room number."

"Damn you, Rick. Room 205."


	4. Room 205

"There is no perfection, only beautiful versions of brokenness."  
**― Shannon L. Alder **

* * *

I reluctantly handed him a spare room key I had in my purse. He took it after taking another gulp.

Once inside, Rick grabbed the Do Not Disturb tag and hung it on the outside of the door. I had just come out of the bathroom, after a brief shower to get the day off of my skin to only overlap his day on to mine in the most savage way.

His sexual appetite convinced me every single time he was a keeper. I knew if I were to hold out any longer I would only be delaying my own needs that weren't being met by holding on to an unrealistic grudge.

"Why do I let you drive me crazy?"

We were both looking up at the ceiling from the hotel bed we shared. Our bodies glistening from each other's sweat. I turned to look at Rick the moment he turned to look at me. Our breathing became less rapid.

"Because you are open to being crazy," I smirked.

"You hurt me Michonne. I didn't know what to do with what you said."

"What are you talking about, Rick?"

"I'm talking about us. What I am to you. I know it is more than sex."

"Where is this coming from?"

"I would have left my wife a long time ago. I want you to know that."

"Rick-"

"Hear me out, Michonne. Lori had you on speaker. I heard you tell her that it was strictly sex between us."

"What do you want me to do, tell her I lied?"

"I had just told my wife I may be in love with you. It was the reason she called you."

"_May_ be in love?"

"At the time, yes. Now there is no doubt."

"Why exactly are you here, Rick?"

"I'm here with you because this is where I want to be."

"Okay."

"I'm expecting more than okay, Michonne."

"More than?"

"More than sex."

"It is."

"It is what?"

"More than sex."

We were connecting more than ever, and for me, it was scary to allow my guard to remain down with him. We continued our pillow talk.

"I took the kids on a picnic the other day. Lori didn't want to go. It was just four kids and me."

"Oooh so scary." I teased.

"They were looking forward to it. I didn't want to disappoint them. I also didn't want to rehash things with Lori while our girls were there. It's enough that Carl and Judith have to feel the tension. I don't want it to affect, Jasmine and Abby too."

"Was it not her idea?"

"Something I have to remind her about."

"Lori isn't taking it out my girls, is she?"

"Of course not. It was Lori's idea to have Abby and Jasmine over as much as possible. For Carl and Judith to get to know them. She said she was ok with raising them together as long as you were okay with it. I commend Lori for that. She's not a bad person, Michonne."

"Are you trying to convince yourself or me?"

"There was a point I was trying to make."

"Make it real quick because I am about to go to sleep."

"You are not about to go to sleep."

Rick was right. I wasn't about to close my eyes when his blues were staring directly into mine.

"Well, not until you tell me all about the picnic."

"Well, it went well. We had sandwiches."

"Lori at least had you prepared for a picnic, right?"

"Not at all."

"You made sandwiches?"

"No, I did not. I said we had sandwiches, nothing about I made sandwiches. Subway made the sandwiches the way each and every single kid wanted including a bag of chips, a cookie along with a drink. We went to the nearest park. Spread out a blanket and had our picnic."

"Tell me there are pictures."

"There are."

"You have exactly two minutes to send them to my phone."

"You've got me on a timer?"

Rick reached for his phone propped on a charger on top of the nightstand. Within seconds my phone chimed indicating that I had received them.

"I am happy the picnic still went as planned."

"It did. Believe it or not, I was faced with a delicate situation. A dilemma of great proportions."

"What could it have possibly been if Subway took care of the most important task of sandwich making." I couldn't help giggle at the stern look Rick wore.

"Well, Jasmine asked me which mommy did I love the most?"

"Oh my God. This has to be so confusing for them."

"Confusing to them or for me?"

"There is no way to answer that question without hurting them."

"Hurting them or you?"

"Stop it, Rick."

"Stop what?"

What did I want him to stop? My heart was racing wondering what his response was to the question asked of him. I was curious about his answer.

"I don't think they fully understood what I said, but it was a win-win situation."

"A man who knows how to have his cake and eat it too."

"Do you really believe that?"

"What was your response?"

"I told Jasmine and Abby that I am in love with their Mommy. I told Carl and Judith that I will always love their Mommy."

I remained silent upon hearing this. What Rick had said caused my heart to swell. While it may have been enough to appease our children, I had questions that I refused to ask.

_Why am I so in love with this man? Why do I allow this? Why do I let him, the father of my children to do this to me? What is this?_

"Tell me this is more than sex."

"We just had sex, Rick."

"Tell me, Michonne."


	5. Mike and Michonne In Therapy

"Sometimes carrying the burden of an upsetting truth, and hiding it, is actually a gift you give to someone else. You bear that burden, so they don't have to, in a situation where telling them will change nothing."  
**― Cassandra Clare**

* * *

Dr. Deanna knew that the handsome African American man's logic was flawed. Like many other men that have sat across from her spilling their guts with an unmatched level of confidence in her therapist office, he was one who did not deviate in his thought process. Mike wasn't a man who cared about how the world perceived him nor was his decisions based on approval from the masses. He was going to leave his wife who was carrying another man's child.

Dr. Deanna waited for her patient Mike to exit her office before sighing heavily. His wife was next. Her name was Michonne who was equally attractive, and very astute in thinking this may have been what she needed more than anything another child to care for after losing the son they once shared less than two years ago. Michonne saw this as a new beginning while her husband was in the lobby declining any further future appointments with their marriage therapist.

Carrying the burdens of each of her patient's was an occupational hazard, Dr. Deanna thought to herself before jotting down notes and coming to a conclusion after each clients' visit. There was always a tricky balance in remaining and staying neutral. It was an acrobatic act she had mastered to some degree. If it weren't for the fact that Dr. Deanna was a woman with a personal life that was too wrought with the first-hand experience in dealing with heartbreak, rejection, and for her the sure signs of aging she wouldn't have a tough struggle with overly sympathizing.

Quietly Deanna sat back in her overstuffed leather chair for a brief moment of reflection.

Dr. Deanna began to study Mike's wife who was avoiding eye contact, dressed in a pantsuit and heels that complemented the style that transcended trends. Impeccable grooming from hair, and skin.

Deanna had predicted Michonne would take the same spot on the opposite end of the couch where her husband Mike had sat just moments earlier. They were polar opposites even when not in the same room. Mike preferring the far left and Michonne seated on the far right. The right of the couch was a large picture window where the Angel trumpets, yellow and pinks were in full bloom.

"Michonne, how are you?"

"I'm fine."

"Good to hear."

"It's a beautiful day."

"It has been for a while. Would you agree?"

"I took a long walk around my neighborhood."

"Really?"

"It's like I am noticing more and more people with babies, strollers, children on bikes. It sounds different to me now. Crisper. Precise.'

"It is that time of year. School is out for spring break."

"What type of tree is that outside the window. Odd for the flowers to droop downward."

"Odd is a great word to describe those shrubs. More of a bush but if I want more flowers, I must allow it to think it is a tree, or treat it as such." Deanna chuckled. She was glad there was a bit of eye contact as they communicated and the animated expression upon her client's face was priceless. "They are called Angel Trumpets."

"That is considered a bush?"

"Can grow up to 20 feet. Highly poisonous. I wouldn't advise around inquisitive children." Dr. Deanna's last sentence was intentional.

"Duly noted."

"It is your decision, Michonne. It has been your decision all along. No one else's. Just know you have to live with the choice you make. You have proven you can with the death of your son, Andre. Now with a little one growing inside of your this will be at the expense of your marriage. Do you understand that? Are you okay with that?"

"It had been some time since... Mike and I agreed I guess it was for the best that we didn't try for any more after our son."

"What has changed, Michonne? What has changed from just two weeks ago until now. I thought you and your husband were in agreement to terminate the pregnancy and move forward."

"I've heard their heartbeats. I'm pregnant with twins."

Deanna was silent.

"I was conflicted. The day came, and I changed my mind." Michonne shrugged with tear-filled eyes.

"Does the man you had a one night stand know?"

"Yes. His wife is pregnant too."

"How did you come about this knowledge?"

"He had told me. He came by my office unexpected. Not sure why, really. He could tell I'm with child. He wanted to know if there was a chance I might be carrying his child. I told him yes."

* * *

Mike didn't tell me he was going to leave. He said he was going to wait for me to finish my session with Dr. Deanna since he had gone first. Instead, I found him missing. He was always doing that, vanishing.

The receptionist had asked if I wanted to schedule for the following week. I had almost forgotten. It was my routine to schedule for the same day and time.

Appointment made.

I had to get out into some fresh air. I'd unburden myself of all my thoughts. I was feeling light in comparison and was eager to get on with the rest of my day.

Our divorce was finalized, and I went on with my life. I planned to carry my twins to term.

Their father was there for their birth. He disappeared for awhile before reappearing at my front door. One thing I had never done was pressure him or demand he be in our daughters lives. I was more than financially stable to provide for them.


	6. Carl, Judith, Abigail and Jasmin

"Just because something isn't a lie does not mean that it isn't deceptive. A liar knows that he is a liar, but one who speaks mere portions of truth in order to deceive is a craftsman of destruction."  
**― Criss Jami **

* * *

As time past, the appointments began to become less and less, amounting to practically once every three or four months. Five years later the woman who continued the ritual of sitting nearest the window had remained slightly unchanged in appearance and upkeep as was the topic of conversation during their most recent session.

"You have said it was an activity you enjoyed."

"Yes. I love teaching my girls at home. Homeschooling. I battle with parts of me that want to keep them to myself and other parts of me that knows it is best to allow them an opportunity to go to school and be around other children."

"I don't see where there is a problem, Michonne."

"I want their father to be there on their first day. They want him there. They even said as much to him."

"What did he say?"

"He can't be in two places at once. The first day of school is a big deal to him too. I had to compromise."

"Why did you compromise, Michonne."

"Because it was a big deal to him too."

"For most parents, yes. Most parents would agree. One of many monumental moments is the first day of kindergarten."

"He purchased a house. A house for me and our girls to live in. Just over two miles away from where he lives with his wife and their two kids. Abigail and Jasmine are going to the same private school as his son. He said it was the only reasonable thing he could think of without splitting him in half."

"A compromise. The purchase of a home and from what I can imagine not just any home. Am I correct?"

"He knows better. If money was an issue, which it is not in either of our situations...Let's just put it this way, he knows better. "

"A home. For most people, it would be very difficult to conceal from a spouse. I would like to know how you two are able to keep this from his wife?"

"She knows."

"About the house or you?"

"Me."

"What happened?"

"His son told. He has a son named Carl."

"This is the first time you have mentioned the name of the son." Dr. Deanna wanted to make Michonne aware of what she had never disclosed.

"Carl told her. Carl told his Mom. She ended up confronting him. He didn't deny it."

"Is that what he told you?"

"He said they were at some steak restaurant. He was glad it was done in a public place. There wasn't any drama. He said she was surprised and hurt."

"Sometimes a public place is best."

"At first I was glad it was out in the open. Then the phone calls started. Non-stop..."

Deanna realized Michonne was lost in her head re-visiting the intricacies of the past that she was refusing to allow to define her future.

I was still on the call. I was speechless. I could hear him in the background.

_"Hang the phone up, Lori! Damn it, hang up!"_

_"I'm not hanging up. I have questions! I need answers!"_

_"Just stop it why don't you? Stop, damn it!"_

_{Click}_

He called me that night. I didn't answer his call. I was pissed. I couldn't sleep either. My only thoughts were moving far enough away and changing my phone number. If my girls were home, I would have left with them in the night. If he wanted to see them he would have to make arrangements but I wasn't going to keep making myself accessible. I checked the time. It was 2am. He couldn't unlock the door. I had the locks changed. He was shaking and banging on the door.

_"Go away, Rick!"_

_"Open the God damn door, Michonne."_

_"Fuck off!"_

_"Open the door, Michonne! We need to talk."_

_"Go away!"_

I couldn't believe he kicked my front door in...

* * *

There was a long pause. Long enough for Doctor Deanna to realize she was losing Michonne to something that was significant and private. She waited a moment longer and by doing so, the marriage and family counselor hesitated to venture or to connect dots, wondering if it was sheer coincidence or if she actually knew the cast of characters in this ongoing saga based on a new couple that started coming to a few sessions recently.

"Do you know what his son Carl would have actually known about you to tell his mother?"

From Dr. Deanna notes Carl was only one month older than her Clients' identical twins Abigail and Jasmine. This particular name was mentioned before she marked a star by the child's name.

"Not sure what he was expecting if we are all living nearby."

"What actually happened, Michonne?"

"We were shopping for school supplies. The very same store he was in with his kids. Once the girls recognized him, they took off running towards him. There was no way he was going to pretend he didn't know them. He isn't that type of person. But he is the type to not think shit through. Rick introduced them to his kids. Carl told their mother about Abigail and Jasmine."


	7. I Wouldn't Trade Them

Nobody likes children, your mother assured you. That doesn't mean you don't have them."  
―** Junot Díaz, This Is How You Lose Her**

* * *

"Rick, how are you?"

Dr. Deanna placed her pencil down on her clipboard and gave her newest client her full attention.

"I'm fine. I think."

"It's a beautiful day." Dr. Deanna eyes traveled towards the picture window where the Angel Trumpets still bloomed and scented the room with its fragrance. As predicted it went unnoticed by the man who's piercing blue eyes took on a more subtle hue, less pronounced as his curly brown hair that was seeing more gray wisp featured along his hairline and beard.

"It is. I went jogging today."

"Really?"

"Yes. I had to get out. It's been so long since the last time I went jogging. I figured it's my contribution to the planet. I passed by a few walkers, maybe of like mind about our environment. Jogged all the way here."

"This must be the first time I have seen your lips just about to do something different."

"Almost there."

"Smile and the world will smile with you." Dr. Deanna remarked with a smile of her own that was matched briefly with his. This was something new from the patient who has now mentioned fitness and taking care of the planet in one sentence. Though brief she jotted it down in her notes anyway.

"How long has it been?" Dr. Deanna had asked. She was not concerned with adding an activity of exerting energy as much as she wanted to know how the recent changes were being handled in his household.

"Three months."

"How is it going? How's your son and daughter getting along with their new siblings thus far?"

"Great. There's much more noise throughout the house."

"More children tend to do that."

"Keeping them entertained has been a challenge now that the novelty has worn off."

"How's that coming along?"

"No complaints. Nothing, really. We make a full day of it. We have the kids to keep us pretty much distracted. They all have these personalities. One kid wants to do this, the other wants to do that-We eventually get a consensus."

"We?"

"Lori and I."

"What is great about children is that they tend to be more adaptable than us adults." Dr. Deanna hedged for a reason.

"I agree."

"How is your wife Lori handling having the girls there, in her home, in her presence?"

"Lori is great. I mean she hasn't complained. It was her idea."

"Is it helping the marriage?"

"You would have to ask Lori."

"Are you two any better for it?"

"You would have to ask Lori."

"Has this helped in any way, Rick?"

"I get to spend time with them. Out in the open. No hiding. I've since introduced them to my parents."

"Your parents?"

"Yes. On one hand dealing with their disappointment was one thing. Difficult to be honest. Then to get to the point where my parents want them to come over has been a good change. They genuinely want to know them. Be a part of their lives."

"Commendable."

"Took them all to the farm the other day. My parents are still here in King's County. I stayed with my parents with all four kids. Lori didn't take to kindly with my mother oohing and ahhing over Abigail and Jasmine. She left early. Left me to entertain."

"Entertain or parent?"

"I have the parenting thing down, just not the entertaining without some help. Luckily there were chicken, cows, pigs, and horses."

"From what you told me, you never wanted children."

"I have them. I wouldn't trade them."

Dr. Deanna was expecting a much longer response. She didn't get one. Instead, she watched the color drain away from his face. From his facial expression, she could see that some type of private thought struck him and pained him to speak more in depth about his private thoughts on the matter. She waited.

* * *

A/N: Crazy thing...this story was supposed to be called Angel Trumpets. Not Man In The Middle. I will try and update Tumblr with a picture of Angel Trumpets. Also corrected some errors and updated the chapter Carl, Judith, Abigail and Jasmine if anyone desires to re-read. Nothing major but I think it was 400 words more added? or less to that chapter. I don't remember...hmmm Also update Mike and Michonne therapy chapter as well. My brain is exhausted.


	8. I Didn't Want Children

"Never open the door to a lesser evil, for other and greater ones invariably slink in after it."  
**― Baltasar Gracian, The Art of Worldly Wisdom **

* * *

"I never wanted children with Lori."

"How about the other woman?"

"Lori was a few weeks pregnant already when we first got married. Before marriage, we discussed where we stood, and I made it clear I wasn't ready to have children. She agreed. Then come to find out she was pregnant..."

"How about the other woman?"

"I had met her in Spain. A week before my wedding. She had come with a friend who was dating a friend of mine who is also a friend of Lori's. I had met HER there. It was one night that turned into another, and so on. I was captivated by her. To me, she was the most amazing woman I would ever have the privilege to encounter. By morning she was gone."

"Unprotected sex is dangerous."

"I know. Tell me about it. She gave birth to a set of twins a month after my wife had our son."

"How did you find out she was pregnant, Rick?"

"I sought her out. I was angry at Lori. I felt duped. I used the excuse of her mood swings, sickness and constant need to sleep a reason to seek the other person. I still had her business card."

"You created a narrative to justify your actions." Dr. Deanna noted the nod he gave to her description of what men tend to do to rationalize cheating.

"I made an impromptu visit to her office. She's actually an attorney. She wasn't expecting me. We hadn't kept in contact since Spain. When she came from around her desk, I could tell that she was pregnant too."

"What did she tell you?"

"I mean, I was speechless. I got around to asking her and she nodded..."

Dr. Deanna hesitated in probing since he had his face concealed by his hands. By him doing this she noticed that his ring was missing from where it once was just a week ago.

"I never imagined this happening to me. It has been a screaming announcement to the world that I had unprotected sex outside my marriage. I have to accept for the next 18 years I will have to compete for attention and be thankful for any bit of affection spared. I didn't want that for my life. Not at first. Not going into a marriage. I wanted time to enjoy my wife and if in time my mind changed, our mind, then it was on the table. It didn't happen that way for me. I started drinking more than usual. Eventually, I ended up back in _her_ office two months before she was due to offer any support she needed. Lori had given birth a few weeks later to our son Carl, and I was on standby for the birth of twins. I was there. I was there to provide for them and try to be in their lives as much as possible. There was nothing more going on between their mother and me at the time until something was going on between their mother and me."

"There is more than a parenting relationship?"

"More than I bargained for and more than I am willing to give up. I struggled with what I continued to do on the side and it became more frequent when Lori was pregnant again a few months after having our first child."

"This second pregnancy was unplanned as well?"

"For Lori, no. To Lori there is no such thing as unplanned pregnancy in a marriage. In Lori's mind, the only unplanned pregnancy was the birth of the twins."


	9. Doggy Doors?

"I talk to God but the sky is empty."  
**― Sylvia Plath**

* * *

"Most acts or actions are sometimes based on emotional upheaval, selfishness, or trauma. Without those shared experiences, understanding can't necessarily be achieved when it defies comprehension." Dr. Deanna offered some insight.

"I couldn't help escalating our fights. I did a lot of shouting. Crying, randomly. My emotions ran the gamut. People that knew me or knew us and our situation were sympathetic towards me. A few volunteered their advice for me to wreak havoc on the man who had promised to be faithful to me."

"People will have you do things they would not do themselves." Dr. Deanna summarized the intentions of the overly sympathetic ear who rendered advise.

"Should I leave or should I stay. I never found a solid consensus. My mother in law 'Do not allow another woman to chase you from your man.' attitude. I just didn't know what to do."

"Marriage can endure the worst trials and tribulations."

"I believed that at first."

Deanna sat back unsure where Lori was going or what she was going to reveal.

After finding out, during the first few months, we fought with words and silence. Then one day I challenged him. I tried to stab him. I wanted to hurt him with my fist, my nails, my boot covered feet. I spat in his face. Name calling. Apology. Angry sex. Repeat. My failed attempt at killing him caused him to snap. He took off his ring. It was the reason he did. Officially. Finally.

What I remember is that I caught him off guard that day. The day we fought. I was bruised from our fight — his stronghold and forcing me to drop the knife. I had light bruising in the area around my wrist and arm. I thought about it. Tempted. I had a story concocted to tell the police and have him arrested for battery. Unfortunately, there were two witnesses, Carl, and Judith when I rushed him with a butcher knife for having fathered children with another woman when he had claimed to not want any at all with me. I couldn't understand how did he get her pregnant.

"Do you know why men can find it so easy?"

Dr. Deanna was slightly surprised to hear Lori suddenly move the topic to the present. She questioned for clarity, "Are we concerned with men in general or your husband?"

"I can never get a straight answer from Rick."

"What exactly is it you want to know?"

"How long has it been going on."

"What has he told you?"

"He told me it was only that time."

"Why don't you believe that?"

"Do you believe that, Dr. Deanna?"

"My job is to take what people say at face value. The weight of words is demonstrated by action. Thoughtful, sometimes deliberate. It is the only way to judge someone's intent."

"We've only been married five years. Our son started Kindergarten, two months ago. They are all in the same classroom. It is a very exclusive private school. Rick made sure of that. He made sure they were living close enough to attend. He had a house built to make sure of it."

"How did you find out about the house, Lori?"

"Our architect Aaron came by our house. Rick was on business trip and it was way before I ever knew he had fathered twins."

"What happened?"

"Aaron had some questions about the drawings. Wanted to run it by me to make sure this or that was okay due to how picky I am. He had designed our current home. I wouldn't have thought too much about it but the crazy thing was when Aaron wanted to know about the placement of doggy doors."

"What was crazy about that?"

"I am allergic to pets."


	10. College Keg Party

"Writers remember everything...especially the hurts. Strip a writer to the buff, point to the scars, and he'll tell you the story of each small one. From the big ones you get novels. A little talent is a nice thing to have if you want to be a writer, but the only real requirement is the ability to remember the story of every scar.  
Art consists of the persistence of memory."  
**― Stephen King, ****Misery **

* * *

My wedding ring was still at a custom jeweler when I had taken the pre-planned trip with my Bestie Andrea to Spain where her boyfriend Shane was hosting a bachelor's party for his best friend, Rick.

I didn't know any of the people in attendance, but it gave me an opportunity to mingle and sift through the very affluent with my business card if any were ever in need of legal representation, I was the person to call. It was my segue in conversation when the focus was what I did for a living.

_I am an attorney._

I was quietly amazed at the number of floors that were booked inside the Luxury hotel. Being the only African American in a sea of European whites in a predominate ethnic nightclub, I found myself drinking more than necessary, smiling, and talking until I began to annoy myself. My only reprieve was the adjacent sandy beaches that led to crystal clear waters lapping the shore-line, offbeat to the music that blasted and thumped outside the Bachelor party.

Rick and I were never officially introduced to each other. Circumstances kept preventing him when everyone was vying for his attention. It was his Bachelor party.

_"My name is Rick."_

I swung around to know who was introducing himself to me in the night, far enough away from the celebration. It was him.

My attention was no longer held by the darkened ocean top lit by the moon and stars. I found myself dazed and confused to see it was the Bachelor himself who I was insanely attracted to from inside the party..

_"What is your name?" He had asked._

_"Michonne."_

_"Michonne?"_

His skepticism confused me.

_"Here's my business card." I handed one to him. _

_"Who are you here with?"_

_"Andrea."_

_"Andrea?"_

_"I am here with my friend Andrea who is here for your friend Shane." I smiled._

_"Andrea! Yeah."_

I was amused to see how the realization hit him that he was supposed to know Andrea out of all the Andrea's in the world OR that his friend was an obvious player.

_"Figured. He seems like a ladies man."_

_"Shane's actually a good guy, believe it or not. He's mentioned seeing someone. With everything going on in my life, I can barely keep up."_

_"Barely keep up or care?" _I mused at what his response would be.

Rick had actually paused at my question for a moment too long. He didn't dignify it with an answer or any further consideration. He was studying me to the point I began to feel as if I was under a microscope, the same as I did inside the Bachelor bash that was still full of steam and Pheremones.

_"Why do I feel like I know you from somewhere?"_ He had asked.

His eyes began to become a familiar landscape, a bridge to a past I had almost completely forgotten...

"There is a saying that sometimes we manifest people in our lives when we need them the most or at the wrong time." Dr. Deanna voiced before Michonne drifted further into her past.

_"Your hair."_

_"What about it?" _My hand had gone to my head where locks used to be years ago. They weren't there, and for him to remember caused me to view him differently. There were few people who would have remembered my former hairstyle.

_"College Keg party. We slept together."_

His certainty startled me. I stepped closer to him and still he didn't look like anyone I would have slept with during my no more black men phase.

_"You came into the party with a few of your friends. You had on a red dress with a black tie thing at the neck. I was surprised to see you then because I had just ran into you at the bookstore. You wore dreads pulled back. Headband. I had a crush on you. To see you here tonight. I felt all those things I did years ago. I didn't think I could get any luckier."_

_"Any luckier or any more stoned."_

_"I'm not stoned." He laughed._

_"Then I want what you're drinking."_

_"We drank from the same cup that night at the keg party." He laughed even more._

_"Keg party, huh?" _I still wasn't fully convinced.

"_You didn't make any eye contact with anyone and with the way things were that night. You had lost sight of your friends and made way to the couch where you sat, alone. I got my nerve up and sat next to you." He stepped closer to me on the other side of the large sand covered boulders. _

_"You had asked me if I wanted something to drink."_

_"I did."_

_"I told you water." I recalled._

_"Bottled. Un-opened. It took a minute, but I got you to loosen up. __You drank from my cup."_

_"Only because you drank from it first."_

_"I wanted you to relax."_

_"It was enough alcohol to get me to relax and dance."_

_"The alcohol gave me the courage to ask you to dance. Steal a few kisses."_

_"We danced."_

I had met him long before Spain, though brief.

_"You were my first." _It was partially true, he was my first white guy.

_"Why did you tell me your name was Suzanne?"_

* * *

A/N: Goodnite. Will pick up again tomorrow evening. Don't worry. No rabbit..I mean foxholes.


	11. I Kicked The Door In

_"a lot of times_  
_we are angry at other people_  
_for not doing what_  
_we should have done for ourselves_

_\- responsibility"_  
**― Rupi Kaur, ****The Sun and Her Flowers **

* * *

I told her I can't try harder. I can't. I can't keep pretending.

"Pretending?" Dr. Deanna tipped her head for more understanding of how or why he was describing his actions as such.

"My parents. Her parents. They want me to work harder on my marriage. To me what they are saying is to stick it out even when you love someone else. Out of duty. A promise to love and...How is that fair to Lori? I'm tired of pretending things aren't true. Coming here twice a week making her think...I want I keep holding down, fighting it, trying to strangle it...What is expected is for me not to mourn it, devote time out of my day to think about what I would have given to have one more night, one more day...Being here hasn't changed anything. Not for me, it hasn't."

"There is a lot to say about the effort you've put forth. You must keep in mind that women, not necessarily your wife but women, in general, don't seem to connect the idea around a man who can be with them but also wants someone else. Secretly, discreetly, or blatantly. Once the veil has been removed, and the dreaded infidelity introduced whether before or during one's marriage, the facade begins to be a conscious choice. Most women would prefer the facade than an honest discussion that consists of misplaced desire, sexual frequency, and personal physical upkeep. Sacrificing one's happiness is a choice the same as you come to these sessions which obviously, it had nothing to do with saving your marriage but everything to do with having someone to listen with an open mind. You can't get it from family or friends who will have an opinion or just plain biased. The reason you come here like many others before and after you is the chance to unload what you may never dare to say to the one who needs to hear it the most. So, tell me what you would tell Lori. Talk to me as if I was Lori. Rick, what is it that you can't give me?"

"I can't give you what you need."

"What is that?"

"A version of me."

"What version is that, Rick?"

"A version that never existed."

Dr. Deanna watched as the man in her office began to weep for it was the first time he had recognized his own death if he remained in a marriage that he created by his very own actions.

When he had finally spoken, Dr. Deanna sat back and listened as he took her along to travel his crisscrossed memories, overlapping with the present tense.

A tall ginger was at the front door of the Frat party shouting over the blare of music, _"Claire, help us with some of these God Damn Kegs why don't you asshole!"_

_"Sorry to cut this short, Sin, but we need you to help,"_ Shane gave a heavy tap to Rick's back.

Back then my name from my Frat brothers was either Sin or Claire. I answered to either but never Rick until I had graduated. She had never asked me for my name and if she had I would have told her to call me Rick. She told me her name was Suzanne.

I didn't want to stop dancing with her. I grabbed her hand to follow me outside to watch us unload. She found it funny watching me manhandle, almost slipping and falling. Those Kegs were heavy. She tried to help us out. In her red dress...

Dr. Deanna noted there was something significant about the college girl's red dress. or just the color red in general.

I had enough of Lori. Done. My family, her family, our kids, relatives, and friends were all at the farm. I had promised the twins mother I would have them back that evening to celebrate Thanksgiving again but with her. Time was of the essence. I kept time but losing it at the same time when Uncle Kurt began choking on food lodged in his throat. It was in my mother's kitchen where Lori and I were alone or so I thought. Lori was ranting about my constant time watching. She wanted me to take Abigail and Jasmine to their mother and to come right back. Maybe it was the look in my eyes, or perhaps it was my lack of response that drove Lori off the deep end... My parents kept all four kids who were crying. I took Lori home. I took my ring off. .

The twin's mother wouldn't answer any of my phone calls. So I headed over to her house. The house I purchased. It was Thanksgiving night when I had kicked the front door in. I found her in the kitchen holding a knife too.

* * *

A/N: I was delirious last night from taking this story from my notebook to keyboard that I had to stop and get some sleep since I knew I would have a little bit of time this morning. Two more chapters tonight and this story will be complete. Then on to the next. Thank you to everyone who likes or enjoy this style of writing! It definitely motivates me to continue. **All I Need** update will be posted Saturday.


	12. Carving Knife

_"Yes, I deserve a spring–I owe nobody nothing." _  
**― Virginia Woolf, ****A Writer's Diary **

* * *

It was the day before Thanksgiving and this was the 3rd time the topic came up. I thought it was the most absurd idea. I shouldn't have to state why.

_"My parents would like to meet you."_

_"What for?"_

_"Really, Michonne?"_

_"When?" _I tried to gauge if there was a divorce somewhere on the horizon. And still it may take a year or two to show my face around his extended family in any capacity.

_"Whenever. My Dad has said as much. My Mom would love to meet you. Thanksgiving is around the corner_."

_"Definitely not stepping foot over there on Thanksgiving while you are still married, Rick. I am not going to put myself in a situation, knowingly, with your wife across the table ready to insult me, my intelligence, nor have to bite my tongue in return."_

_"I agree. I distinctly remember the last back, and forth you had with my wife about the only reason you and I slept together. The only reason."_

_"Oh my God, are you still pissed off about that?"_

_"You only wanted to fuck me?"_

Rick was still upset over something I had said months ago. My words were looping on repeat in his head. I received a random call made to my home, in the middle of the night. Lori had me on speaker phone. Her questions were the usual why, when, what, where, and how?

The question was posed by Lori. I was annoyed. I answered without much thought to the words I chose to echo in his mental chamber.

_"Are you in love with my husband?"_

_"No. I just wanted to fuck him."_

I could hear Rick telling Lori to hang up.

(Click)

* * *

_"Do you mind if I buy you a drink?"_

I knew his voice. I didn't need to turn. He had a distinctly sophisticated country twang to some of his words when he spoke. His tone was what kept me on my toes. My eyes enjoyed when he donned a suit, he was a man with impeccable taste in what he wore. He was also someone I had started back to sleeping with on a consistent basis and I hated myself for it.

I was anticipating his arrival with a degree of feigned indifference which he had become accustomed due to our history. His name was Richard Sinclaire Grimes who I deemed the most handsome man when gazing in his eyes. He was the Chief Officer of Go Stop as of two years ago.

This was the first time Dr. Deanna actually heard Michonne name who she was having an affair with. It was confirmation there was a link between the two couples she had highly suspected. She listened on to what was of significance to her patient even though the doctor questioned if there were any other men in her life at any point in time.

* * *

What most people knew or were aware of, was that he was a highly successful businessman with a wife named Lori and two young children close in age: Carl who was 5yrs old and Judith who had recently turned four. His official anniversary was in two days which would typically be spent with his legal spouse somewhere in the Hamptons or where I imagined high up in the Colorado Mountains in a cabin that was recently built and where we had some of the most amazing sex.

I held my brightly colored Cosmopolitan paying close attention to how the overhanging light from the bar illuminated the glass stem and also highlighted my ten-carat diamond engagement ring.

_"I see you are still wearing it,"_ Rick commented dryly.

_"I am."_

Rick sat next to me at the bar. His attention was on the different bottles of alcohol lined up behind the bartender who pretended to not give much notice to us being the only two sitting there until Rick tossed his drink back and was ready for a refill.

_"I'm confused about some things."_

_"Certainly not about the ring on my finger. It is what engaged people wear when someone has asked to marry them."_

_"Explain to me what we were doing in his penthouse on the balcony just two days ago?"_

_"You were taking advantage of my situation. Still doesn't change anything."_

_"I told you, I love you."_

_"Okay." I shrugged. I found his declaration meaningless at this point._

_"I refuse to believe we don't have something between us despite what you told my wife."_

_"I told your wife the absolute truth, I only wanted to fuck you. It was all it was two days ago on the balcony. The few times at my house in Atlanta. My townhouse in DC. The few times at the house you purchased for me- A- fact you like to remind me of when you can't get your way. Now where was I...a year after the twins were born we had a thing in Paris that jumpstarted but we can't forget Spain before you hee-hawed down the aisle. Oh, and upstairs in a Frat house."_

_"I must be the best fuck you ever had."_

_"You have a solid track record." I smirked_.

* * *

"He's white."

"Who?"

"Abigail and Jasmine's, Dad. I had never seen the color drain so fast from his face."

Dr. Deanna was slightly confused on how the events were lining up.

I was having one of many nervous breakdowns. He was present for most of them. After one swift kick he was inside, pissed. I was in the kitchen. He found me there holding a carving knife for the turkey I had prepared many hours earlier thinking he would spend a portion of that time with me once he brought our girls home. I was crying and carving slices and it was way after 2am.

_"Is this what I deserve, Rick?"_

_"No, Michonne."_


	13. White Sweater

"You have value and you deserve better."  
**― Ken Poirot **

* * *

Rick was trying to console Abigail who made it clear that she didn't really want her hair taken down from the fancy bun the hairdresser had created the day before nor did Jasmine who was crying because her sister was in tears and she knew she was next if their father hadn't walked in.

_"What the hell, Lori! Why did you go and do that!?"_

_"I was trying to make things the same. It is hard to do when your daughter JUDITH wants everything including her hair like THEIRS!"_

_"You could have scheduled the same package. I think it's called Mommy and Little Me. It's in Atlanta."_

_"Oh, okay!"_

_"Why in the hell you would take it down. I mean, why? Help me understand this?"_

_"If she didn't want it down she could a have said so."_

_"You are the adult. There is a level of trust and respect that their mother and I..."_

_"Yes, please keep talking! Let the truth come spilling out why don't you. Finish your sentence please!"_

* * *

"Why did you take Abigail's hair down?" Dr. Deanna halted Lori from continuing an unpleasant moment in time.

"Do you have any idea what it is like to see and hear random people where ever we go _ooh_ and _ahh_ over those two? It's like Carl and Judith are invisible whenever those two are around. Now Judith wants her things exactly alike. They aren't a good influence on my four-year-old."

"I want to understand your motive. By undoing Abigail's hair, did it change anything? You have described Abigail and Jasmine as both doll-like in appearance, would they have been less so?"

"No. Just whiny crying little divas!"

* * *

A catalyst. A major event.

I realized I no longer wanted to hold on to any aspect of my illusion. I could see clearly, and once I did, I wasn't going to hesitate another day.

It happened when we passed each other in the hall. He was going to the guest bedroom after spending most of the night sleeping in Carl's bedroom with our kids and his twins.

I carefully selected things to take, just a few items of clothing and an old white sweater I barely remembered until then. I glanced at myself in the mirror wearing it, trying to decide whether or not to wear my hair up or down. My sweater was much bigger than I remembered or I was way thinner due to stress.

I tried as much as humanly possible to be quiet as I closed the back door behind me. I went straight to our unattached garage. There was a slight struggle to lift the heavy door. I hurried and pulled the heavy cover from my old red convertible, ready to make my great escape.

Freedom.

No way was I going to remain complacent in hopes things would change.

"You facilitated change." Dr. Deanna's tone was agreeable.

I wasn't going to sacrifice any longer. Once I heard the sound of the engine roar to life, I knew I made the best decision for me. The cloud of smoke was an added bonus. The farther I drove, the more I was determined to put distance and time between us.

_"Hey there."_

_"Hey, yourself."_

_"What you doing calling me at 3am?"_

_"Wanted you to know I am on my way."_

_"On your way?"_

_"California here I come!"_

_"You know I am in California?"_

_"I do."_

_"Are you shitting me?"_

_"I'm not."_

_"Well, I be damn."_

_"Do you have a problem?"_

_"No, ma'am I do not."_

_"I just said fuck it. Like FUCK IT. FUCK IT ALL."_

_"My kind of woman. Hee Haw!"_

_"I can't describe the level of tired I have been living."_

_"Does he know?"_

_"He will, when he wakes up."_

_"Aww shit."_

_"She dropped their kids off to our house. He will wake up with our two hungry children and the two picky eaters. Add the disappointment of a canceled camping trip. He will go bonkers. Judith can be such a drama queen along with Carl...He will have his hands full."_

_"He is going to lose his mind, huh? Bet he never guessed this in a million years."_

_"He doesn't think things through, you know. If he didn't have a dick for brains, those twins wouldn't exist."_

_"Can't put it all on him, Lori. Takes two to tango."_

_"Please tell me you aren't coming to his defense?"_

_"I'm just telling you how I see it."_

_"I am his wife. He was my husband. Why should I worry about someone from his past? I didn't feel threatened by it. I trusted Rick to do right by me."_

_"If I were there I would have warned you, Lori."_

_"You would have done more than that, Shane."_

_"I would have tried to do more than that, and you would have more than likely shot me down cold."_

_"All these years?"_

_"I am a persistent motherfucker."_

_"You are-I have no words for you."_

_"I have always felt that I was the better man for you. I would never hurt you. The way you found out about the affair wasn't right. Him hiding the fact that it produced children goes beyond the pale."_

_"It is all out in the open now. __I thought we could work through it."_

_"You should have divorced him, Lori."_

_"Divorce is on the table now. I am done. I am so over it, him and his twins. Our marriage. Done."_

_"I am impressed with this side of you."_

_"You were the first person I called."_

_"I meant every word I said 11 years ago, Lori. Ain't a damn thing changed about how I feel about you and where I stand on things."_

_"11 years ago we were in California..."_

_"And you had on that white sweater..."_


	14. Major Improvement

"There are no wrong turnings. Only paths we had not known we were meant to walk."  
**― Guy Gavriel Kay, ****Tigana **

* * *

I spent five hours at _Mommy and Me Salon_ with three girls and Carl. My son, like his father, wasn't thrilled with waiting and waiting. There was just no way I was going to take Abigail and Jasmine home to their mother with their hair in disarray. I had to bribe them with ice cream to keep it a secret. It didn't work out too well because Michonne called my phone threatening to do a drive by if I didn't put the phone on speaker where she could be heard by Lori.

"I am not sure what it would take to get Abigail and Jasmine from talking so much but it's going to take more than ice cream Rick!"

"Lori will more than likely call the cops on you, Chonne."

"Call the cops for what? All I want is to have a civil conversation about the dos and don'ts."

"I have already had words with Lori about it."

"Now it is my turn. I would've never done that to Judith."

"I know, Chonne."

"Put her on the phone."

"Chonne."

"If you don't put that wife of yours on the phone, I promise you it will be a very long time, Rick."

I gave Lori my phone and escorted Carl and Judith to another part of the house.

* * *

Abigail and Jasmine were over at the house. I had fallen asleep with all of my children on the floor of Carl's bedroom. I didn't want to wake them. I left them all on the floor of our impromptu, "Let's sleep on the floor party". I had been doing it a lot. Not going to my marital bed. I began to prefer sleeping on the couch or in the guest bedroom after Lori had found out about Abigail and Jasmine.

I had checked the time on the glow in the dark mickey mouse clock mounted on the far wall. It was after 4am. I had a missed call on my phone from the twin's mom that I hadn't noticed. Once I was inside the guest bedroom, I dialed. She was to call me once her flight landed no matter the time. I needed to know she made it safely to the home I purchased for her.

"What are you doing?"

_"Talking to you."_

_"How was your trip?"_

_"Business."_

_"How was your business trip?"_

_"Successful."_

_"We need to plan a personal one."_

_"What do you have in mind?"_

My attention was taken by the sound coming from the garage. A motor revving by the time I had made it to the window for a better view. There was nothing but a cloud of smoke from the exhaust pipe. Lori was gone.

This wasn't the turning point I needed to move forward with Michonne. I needed to hear her say she loved me and wanted to be with me. Being with me included Carl and Judith now that Lori took off.

_"Hello? Rick, are you there?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"What would you like to plan? I need advance notice to have a sitter on standby, or I can check to see if my parents are available. Plus with school and-"_

_"This will include the kids."_

_"Okay...Abigail and Jasmine would really like that. They still mention the Cabin in Colorado. They were just saying the other day how skiing and sledding are still the best!"_

_"Carl and Judith, too."_

_"What?"_

_"From now on when I use the word kids, it includes them."_

_"Is Lori okay with this?"_

_"My concern is if you are okay with this?"_

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. I waited. It was important to me. I needed to know. I was a package deal, and I was offering myself over to a woman I was in love with the moment I confronted her in her office almost five years ago.

_"I know what you are thinking. I want you to know, I am not asking for anything more than to keep them. I lost my son who was only five-years-old. Please don't ask me to..."_

_"Ask you to do what, exactly?"_

_"I want to keep them."_

_"It's your decision. I'm not here to influence it or try to change your mind about it. I'm sorry you lost a child. Am I right to think you are carrying mine. Is it my baby?"_

She nodded. .

_"Twins."_

_"Twins?"_

I couldn't just stand there and watch her fall apart.

She was torn up about it, and it ripped me to shreds to see her that way. The magnitude hit me like a ton of bricks. I would have never asked her to have an abortion. It wasn't something that crossed my mind, and she thought it was my reason for being there unexpectedly. I would have never asked her to do that. What we did while in Spain was reckless and irresponsible, yes, but when we connected the way that we did we knew what was up and we wasted a lot of time pretending. There was a tug of war, me being the man in the middle once her husband was officially out of the picture, that Michonne kept winning hands down and Lori was bound to find out. When Abigail and Jasmine saw me at the store, while I was there with Carl and Judith, there was no way I was going to deny them. I was their Dad too.

Dr. Deanna sat alone in her office pondering over how accurate her assertions were regarding the man in the middle of the whole sordid affair who readily accepted one pregnancy versus the two. From Dr. Deanna's vantage point there was only one planned pregnancy. She was surprised when she finally got her confirmation.

* * *

"Where would you like for us all to go?" Michonne was beaming from ear to ear. She felt like the winner after all.

"I was thinking Camping." Rick grinned.

"When?"

"Soon as they wake up."

"Oh my God, Rick! Really?"

"They will all claim intense hunger and only Abigail and Jasmine will have their minds set on something which must be done a certain way. Not sure what way it is until I've messed it up royally." Rick informed as he began to pull out a few empty suitcases stored inside the guestroom closet.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, I'm bringing hungry mouths to feed including mine. We will be on your door step within the next two hours."

"Really?"

"Is that okay?"

"Okay."

"Okay, what?"

"Okay, I love you."

"How much?"

"More than you can comprehend."

"Try me."

"I fell for you the moment you said you would never ask me to do _that."_

"Because I desperately wanted you to not do that."

"You have given me the greatest gift, Rick, and I will always love you for it."

"I love you, Michonne."

"I would love to have you, Carl and Judith in_ my home_." Michonne emphasized for good measure.

"_Our home_." Rick corrected.

"Major improvement."

* * *

A/N: I am deliriously tired and I will come back to this in the morning. This is the final chapter. Thank you Every Single One of You who enjoyed the ride that contained no smut.


End file.
